The articles and methods of manufacture described herein are generally in the field of packaging devices for food storage and reheat.
Food items left over after a meal typically are packaged for temporary storage in a refrigerator or freezer for later reheating and consumption. Plastic containers, such as TUPPERWARE™, can be used, but are not always of a suitable size and may not be suitable for placement into a conventional oven to reheat the food items. This is inconvenient and necessitates transferring the food to another, oven compatible container before the food can be reheated.
Plastic and foil wraps can be used for packaging the food items. Plastic wraps, however, also typically are not suitable for use in conventional ovens. Foil wraps can be used in conventional ovens; however, some food items cannot easily and conveniently be wrapped in foil wraps so as to completely seal and protect the food during storage, without using excessive amounts of the foil wrap. This problem is particular true when the food item is a slice of pizza, which often is in the shape of wide, somewhat flat triangle. With conventional foil wraps, it also can be inconvenient or difficult to selectively open the wrapped food to expose the top of the food item to heat in the oven while keeping the bottom portion of the food item covered, since foil wraps typically tear easily and along uncontrollable directions.
It would therefore be desirable to have a packaging container which protects food during storage; which can be used in a conventional oven; and which is convenient to use (both when inserting and removing the food item), inexpensive, and disposable. It would be particularly desirable to have such a packaging container to accommodate food items in the general shape of a slice of pizza.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a packaging container which protects food during storage, can be used in a conventional oven, is convenient to use, and disposable.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of manufacturing such packaging containers in large quantities.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a convenient and cost effective means for the end user to store and dispense the packaging containers.